568. Why Are People So Mad at Michael Lewis?

New York City’s mayor called them “public enemy number one.” History books say they caused the Black Death — although recent scientific evidence disputes that claim. In an updated episode from 2025, we ask: Is the rat a scapegoat? And what does our rat hatred say about us? SOURCE ...  Show more

One possibility: a leading hypothesis pursued by researchers (and funders) was built on science that now appears to be fraudulent. Stephen Dubner speaks with the scientist and the journalist who blew the whistle. SOURCES: Charles Piller, investigative journalist for Science, auth ...  Show more

Peter and Michael discuss Michael Lewis’s bestselling book about the rise and fall of Sam Bankman-Fried, a young prodigy whose only flaw was that he dreamed too big.

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Story hound Michael Lewis is back with a new book that charts the rise and fall of Sam Bankman-Fried, once the world's youngest billionaire. A journalist once said that they would read a history of the stapler if Michael Lewis wrote it, and he delivers his most compelling story y ...  Show more

Economist Daron Acemoglu likes to tackle big questions. He tells Steve how colonialism still affects us today, who benefits from new technology, and why democracy wasn’t always a sure thing.

Best-selling author Michael Lewis has a knack for extracting page-turning drama out of otherwise mundane and complicated subjects (hello, bond trading and baseball stats). Several of those books have been so good they’ve been turned into award-winning dramas starring half of Holl ...  Show more